


Second Destiny: Discovery of Mt. Horn

by RealtreeGal



Series: Second Destiny [1]
Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:14:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,587
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24864391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RealtreeGal/pseuds/RealtreeGal
Summary: A simple mission goes horribly wrong, forcing Zane to flee for his life into the Southern Tip of Ninjago, which is an uncharted, dangerous wilderness. Discovered in the valley of treacherous mountains, he is taken in by a new race of people. While trying to find a way home, Zane learns their culture, legends, and that he is the key to their prophecy of a new elemental master, waiting to rise in Ninjago's darkest hour. But this is not a simple in-and-out affair. He is thrown into the entirely new world of Mt. Horn and meets new people and faces new challenges along the way, taken on a new adventure he never could have imagined. Will Zane be able to return to Ninjago in time to help his fellow ninja defeat Morro? Or will the ghastly warlord bring both Ninjago and Mt. Horn to their knees and turn both lands into wastelands of darkness? *Updated weekly!*
Series: Second Destiny [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1799074
Comments: 2
Kudos: 13





	1. Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all! Some of you may recognize me from Fanfiction.net. If you do, you may be familiar with my current book on there. I've been looking for ways to expand said book and figured this site would be a good place to start. On the other site Discovery of Mt. Horn is a work in progress with 44 chapters, so I will post each chapter here on a weekly basis. I am very new to this site and its difficult to navigate, so bear with me, please. Enjoy!

It was a full moon when Zane walked out onto the deck of the Bounty. He had finished cooking dinner for the other ninja and needed a break from the stuffy kitchen. The past weeks have also been very stressful with fighting Morro and trying to rescue Lloyd. He figured sitting outside for a while would help him.

Zane walked across the deck and climbed up the mast to the crow's nest. A cool breeze met him as he sat down and drew his knees to his chest, giving himself a moment to relax. Sure, he was a nindroid, but that didn't mean he didn't appreciate a moment to de-stress from time to time.

Zane took a deep breath, the night air filling his lungs and clearing his mind. The Destiny's Bounty was anchored in a meadow outside the Forest of Tranquility, so Zane closed his eyes and let himself fall in with the sounds of the night: The grass rustling, an owl hooting, frogs croaking.

Zane sighed in relief as he felt the tension in his body melt away. He was overdue for a moment like this-

Suddenly the Bounty's alarm went off, startling Zane from his moment of peace.

"Something must have happened!" He said. He slid down the mast and ran inside to the Bounty's Op Room.

Nya pulled up a camera feed, which showed a group of ghosts at a distant village.

"It appears some of Morro's ghosts are raiding a village." Zane pointed out. "But why?"

"I don't know," Nya said. "But you guys need to go and stop them. We don't want innocent people to get hurt."

The ninja nodded. They pulled on their hoods and ran outside. They jumped off the Bounty deck and summoned their energy dragons, and rode to the village as fast as they could.

Soon they reached the village and gaped in horror as ghosts were ransacking houses and terrorizing the residents. They jumped off their dragons.

"We've got company!" Cole shouted as some of the ghosts began to rush the ninja. They drew their weapons.

"Ninja go!" they cried together. Then both ghosts and ninja clashed.

Cole was fighting a ghost when suddenly two more snuck up behind and leaped on Cole's back. Cole was trying desperately to shake them off when he looked over and saw Jay in the same situation, but then he saw Jay run backward towards the nearest tree, sandwiching the ghosts between the tree trunk and Jay's back. Cole smiled and did the same thing, temporarily stunning the ghosts long enough to slice them clean in half with his scythe. Cole smiled in satisfaction, they charged off to take on another ghost.


	2. Confrontation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! Back again! I know I said I'll be updating weekly but since I added a new chapter to the story on FFN I decided I would post another one on here to be fair. Which leads me to another question: Would you like me to add the chapters I have on FFN to here or just continue to add a new chapter weekly or bi-weekly? 
> 
> And also, a huge thanks to everyone for the kudos, hits, and comments! I wasn't expecting this story to be so well received so quickly
> 
> Enjoy!

Cole's POV

Man, it feels great to kick butt again. Now where's anot- there's one. "HEY!" I shouted, grabbing the ghost's attention. I motioned for him to come at me. The ghost charged at me and tried to slash me across my torso, but I blocked it with my scythe.

The ghost drew back and raised its sword above its head to land a blow, giving me the perfect opportunity to strike.

I swung my scythe with all my might, sending it through the ghost and making it explode into green goo.

"Eugh!" I cried as some spattered on my gi. "That's nasty! This is dry clean only!"

"Uh, COLE!" someone said. "A LITTLE HELP OVER HERE!?"

I looked up and saw Jay having some trouble. He had one ghost one his back while trying to fight a separate one.

I wiped the blade of my scythe before rushing to help Jay.

Jay's POV

"GET OFF OF ME!" I shrieked. "DO I LOOK LIKE A BOUNCY CASTLE TO YOU?!"

I clawed at the ghost jumping around on my back before whipping my nunchucks over my head to smack it in the face. It cried in pain before finally letting go of me.

"Haha, take that!" I taunted. "Oh..."

Very quickly I shut my mouth as what I saw was nothing to laugh about.

The ghost I whacked attracted the attention of the others, and now several ghosts were about to rush me.

Even though I assumed my battle stance, I gulped.

"Well, at least it can't get any worse right?" I chuckled nervously.

I froze when I heard footsteps behind me.

"I take that back...it can."

I whipped around to face what was behind me only to almost whack Cole in the face with my nunchucks.

"Hey!" He growled. "Watch it!"

"Sorry!" I said. Although I admit it, I wouldn't be sorry if I did hit him, he actually kinda deserves it. Especially how he took Nya from me. Oooooh yeah, he deserves it. He's helping me right now though, so I'll let this one slide.

We got back to back and defeated the ghosts together, using our spinjitzu to finish the last three.

"Thanks." I said, out of breath. When I heard no response I looked up. Cole's eyes then became big and round, he was pointing behind me. Before he could say anything, however, I whipped around and smacked a ghost full-on in the face with my nunchucks.

We took a moment to catch our breaths. "Let's go check on the others." Cole said. I nodded and followed him.

No one's POV

Cole and Jay raced over to Kai having an intense sword battle with a ghost. It was striking and hitting fast, but so was Kai. He was fighting well, but getting tired.

"Look!" Jay said and pointed. Cole looked and saw more ghosts coming. Cole groaned.

"Ugh, where does it end?!" He said. The two raced forward and began fighting.

Meanwhile, Kai was still battling. He faked a strike and swung his sword with all his might, knocking the ghost's weapon from its hands. With a final slash, Kai sealed the deal.

Zane had been fighting near Kai, defeating the ghosts that rushed him. After a long battle, he killed the last one with his sai.

"Zane!" Cole said to him. "We're going to comb the village for any more ghosts and make sure all the villagers are safe. Just breathe buddy, we can handle this."

Zane nodded, trying to catch his breath. "Its okay, brothers." He said. "I will not leave without you."

Cole motioned for Kai and Jay to follow him.

Zane watched them go. After they left he looked around for a place to sit down and recover from the exhausting fight. He found an old tree and leaned against it. He closed his eyes and tried to calm his racing heart.

Then he heard rustling. It sounded like it was coming from the trees beyond where he was resting.

Zane didn't pay attention to it. He thought it was some kind of animal.

But then he heard it again.

Zane looked around. the village was quiet, and the others weren't back yet. Where were they? How long had they been gone?

Zane got up from his resting place and decided to find his friends. He got up and turned to leave when he saw something move from the corner of his eye. He turned back around, squinting to see a dark silhouette against behind the branches.

Then to Zane's horror, the shadow stepped forward. Standing there in the soft moonlight, was Morro, the undead master of wind and commander of the ghost army. More of his ghost soldiers stepped out from behind him.

Instinctively, Zane drew his sai. Looking around, he could see he was surrounded. But he mustn't back down.

Seeing Zane's actions, Morro drew the Sword of Sanctuary. The odds were in the ghost commander's favor.

"If you think you stand a chance at defeating me with those puny sai, you're sadly mistaken." Morro taunted. "You and the rest of you pests are the only things keeping me from having Ninjago in the palm of my hand." He twirled the sword between his fingers. "Stand down rust-bucket, or the consequences for your actions will be heavy."

Zane held his ground. Gripping his sai tightly, he stared Morro in the eye.

"No." Zane said flatly. "I will not stand down to you."

Morro narrowed his eyes and grabbed a firm hold of his sword.

"So be it." He said. Then he lunged at Zane.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank y'all for reading! Be sure to favorite and follow, and please drop a comment on your way out! Stay healthy and safe! 
> 
> RealtreeGal, out!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, updating another chapter for y'all! Huge thanks for everyone who's left kudos and comments on this story! Remember, this story is also cross-posted on FFN, I just updated it with another chapter the other day!

Morro was faster than Zane first thought. He ducked out of the way and Morro sailed past him. The ghost landed on his feet. He growled and launched himself at Zane again, unleashing a fury of blows from the Sword of Sanctuary. Zane blocked them, but Morro was quick.

Morro hit Zane with a blast of wind, sending him off his feet. Zane fell hard, and the sai went flying from his hands. He recovered and dove for them and rolled to dodge Morro's sword a split second later.

Zane got back on his feet and slashed at Morro. He dodged the sai and thrust the sword at Zane.

The ice ninja grunted in pain as he felt the blade bite into his exoskeleton under his arm. He stepped back, clutching his wound. Looking at his hand, he saw his silver blood.

Morro aimed a flying kick at Zane, who saw him and dropped to avoid it just in time.

Morro hit a tree and pushed on it, landing a flying kick on Zane's back. The ice ninja fell facefirst into the dirt. He rolled over and saw Morro with the sword about finish him, but Zane pushed off the ground and kicked Morro in the jaw. The ghost reeled back, giving Zane time to recover his sai again. The two got up and stood to face each other.

"You're only making things harder for yourself." Morro snarled. "Now give it up!"

"Never!" Zane shouted. He threw a ball of ice at Morro. He deflected it with the sword, sending it into the trees.

Zane threw another one, this time knocking the Sword of Sanctuary from Morro's hand.

They both dove for the sword. Morro got there first and swung it at Zane, who barely had time to raise his sai to block it.

The blades locked. They started pushing back on each other to get the blades away from them.

Zane hadn't fully recovered from the previous fight, and he was exhausted. He pushed as hard as he could, but he could feel his knees start to go weak from the constant fighting.

Morro was pushing back against Zane and grinned when he felt the ice ninja start to give. They continued to struggle.

Then it all went horribly wrong.

Morro pushed hard enough, and Zane's knees buckled, making the Sword of Sanctuary slip and go plunging into Zane's side.

Zane dropped his sai and screamed in pain, which pierced the night air. He crumpled to the ground, clutching his side, silver blood flowing past his fingers. Warnings signs flashed in his vision as several of his systems were damaged. Morro smiled in bitter satisfaction.

"Scream all you want, ninja." Morro said, standing over him. "Your friends won't reach you in time to save you, I'll see to it personally."

"You two, go find the others and keep them busy!" He barked to two of the ghost soldiers behind them. "Keep them long enough for this one to bleed out and we'll go."

Kai's POV

"Kai, go check that house over there!" Cole said.

I raced off to carry out Cole's orders. "Hello?" I called as I carefully opened the door, hand on my sword handle in case if any ghost decided to jump out at me. As my eyes adjusted to the dimness inside the house, I saw that the place was ransacked. I searched the rest of the rooms, but coming back into the living room I saw something that the first time I completely overlooked.

There, huddled in the corner, was a black figure. It was a man. He turned to face me, his eyes round with fear.

"Sir, are you okay?" I asked. The man tried to speak.

"T-there were g-ghosts. They just rammed in the place-" he stopped.

"Look, we're here to help. Do you have a family?" I asked.

The man calmed down and nodded. "There's an emergency meeting place in the forest. My family could be there." The man quickly got up, but before he could step out the door, I stopped him.

"I'll go with you, just in case if we run into any ghosts." I told him.

"Okay."

We left the house and he led me to the edge of the forest where a path began. It was dark, so I lit my fist to use it for light.

We walked together for some time when we saw light shining through the thick foliage.

"We're almost there." He told me.

Soon the path emerged into a clearing, where the rest of the villagers were with lanterns.

The man I had helped was reunited with his family. Seeing my work done, I turned and headed back to the village. As I came closer, I heard clashing weapons and picked up my pace, only to find Cole and Jay not fighting as I thought, but looking for me.

"Where were you?!" Jay said, stomping over to me.

"I was helping someone get to their family." I snapped at him, annoyed with him acting like I had done something wrong. "So cool it before I squeeze your throat until it turns as big as a balloon and pops!"

Cole got between us. "Both of you, stop!" He said. "Arguing doesn't help anything!"

Jay and I both sighed. "Fine." I said. "Whatever."

"Good." Cole said. "Now lets-"

He was cut off as a scream tore through the air. It wasn't a ghost nor a villager. It seemed to come from where Zane was resting.

Suddenly it clicked in my brain, and so did it for Cole and Jay too because their eyes grew wide with horror.

Not speaking a word, we turned and sprinted to where we last saw Zane, driven by fear for our brother.

Cole's POV

"Both of you, stop!" I said, putting my arms between them before Kai burned Jay into a crisp. "Arguing doesn't help anything!" I kept my arms in between them in case if Jay decided to slap Kai or if Kai was going to punch Jay. They both huffed and Kai muttered something under his breath.

"Good" I began. "Now let's-"

I was cut off by a scream. I froze on the spot. It sure wasn't a ghost scream, but it was horrid regardless. Believe me, you'd know a ghost scream when you hear one, if you've ever heard one. It seemed to come from where Zane was resting.

Zane.

Suddenly it hit me. Panic seized my throat as we ran to see what had happened.

Jay's POV

I was itching to slap Kai! Running off like that without telling us?! Is he insane?! Helping a villager I can understand, but TELL US FIRST!

When Kai said "Cool off before I take your throat and squeeze it until your head grows as big a ballon and POPS!" I was about to lunge at him until Cole intervened. Basically we got the idea that he meant knock it off or I'll thump both of you in the head. I stared angrily into Kai's eyes, Kai returning my gaze. Once we both cooled off, I heard Cole say the beginning of "Now let's go.", but a scream interrupted him.

'That was NOT a ghost's scream whatsoever.' I thought. Then what was i- I stopped what I was thinking as I read the looks on the other guys' faces and them looking in a particular direction. Suddenly it hit me. Something must've happened to Zane!

I began to freak out, and started to run when the others did. The tension was replaced with a intense feeling of dread.

No one's POV

The three ninja raced to where Zane was last seen. They were met by the ghosts Morro had sent to hold them off, but defeated them after a quick battle.

They finally reached where Zane was and gaped in horror.

Zane lay on the ground, eyes closed, clutching his side. Silver blood stained his gi and covered the ground around him. Morro stood over him with the Sword of Sanctuary, its blade stained with Zane's blood. Both of them were surrounded by ghost soldiers.

"ZANE!" Jay cried. "NO!"

Morro's head snapped up. He saw the ninja and he smirked.

"Not even the four of you stand in my way of reaching my ultimate goal." He hissed. "Or three, to be exact."

At the sound of Jay's voice, Zane opened his eyes. With blurry vision, he saw his teammates and tried to get up, groaning as his wound throbbed.

"Get down!" Morro snapped. He kicked Zane in the back, making him fall to the ground.

"Don't touch him!" Cole yelled, gripping his scythe.

"Yeah!" Kai added "If you want to hurt Zane, you're gonna have to get through us first!"

Morro shrugged. "Have it your way then."

He snapped his fingers, and the ghost soldiers began advancing on them. The three ninja got back to back, ready to fight.

Morro rolled Zane onto his back and put a foot on his chest.

"You lured your friends to their deaths because you couldn't keep quiet." He said. He raised the sword. "Die in despair!"

But before Morro could deal the death blow, Jay came flying through the air and leapt on Morro's back, whacking him with his nunchucks.

Morro reeled back, clawing at Jay. But the blue ninja didn't give.

"GET OFF ME!" The ghost commander shrieked.

Cole and Kai were trying desperately to fight their way through the ghosts to get to Zane, but they just couldn't get to him.

Cole tried to see Zane, who was laying on the ground, helpless. But with Morro distracted by Jay, he might be able to get away.

Then Cole said something to Zane that he would regret horribly later.

"Zane!" The earth ninja called. "Run!"

Zane struggled to get up on his knees.

"I-I can't leave you!" He barely managed to say.

"Don't worry about us!" Cole shouted over the sounds of battle. "Just RUN!"

With all the strength he had left, Zane got on his feet and ran as best as he could.

Morro finally pried Jay off of him and saw the ice ninja getting away.

"DON'T LET HIM ESCAPE!" Morro roared. "BRING HIM BACK TO ME ALIVE!"

Zane looked behind him to see two ghosts pursuing him. He ran down a dirt path that led southward into the forest. He had to run, run or be killed. He had to run somewhere. But where?


	4. Chapter 4

Day 1

The sky was still dark when Zane was still being chased by the pair of killer ghosts-Ghoultar and Bansha-a few hours after the attack. Zane was surprised that he had made it this far. His eyes fixed straight ahead, where the dirt road still stretched strong southwards.

When will the road end? Does it even have an end? When will the chase end? Where was he going? Would he live to see another day or die out here alone?

Zane shook his head to shake off the questions racing through his mind as the ghosts began to slowly gain on him. Pushing himself, Zane tried to put as much distance between him and the ghosts as possible. The already intense pain from Zane's gash was steadily rising as a response to the change in pace. Zane seriously thought he would pass out from it.

But he had to keep going.

Clutching his side, Zane looked up to the sky. The moon he was looking up at from the bounty's deck only hours earlier was still hanging in the east, and dark, murky clouds were scuttling over the stars. Looking back to the seemingly never-ending road, Zane gritted his teeth and kept on running.

...

Zane never thought he'd be so happy to see the sun rise over the trees. He had been running and hiding all night. No matter where he went, they always found him.

But now that the sun was out, he could finally stop to rest. Ghoultar and Bansha would die in sunlight, so they were forced to take cover under the trees during the day.

Zane's knees gave out and he flopped onto the ground. He gasped in pain as his injury throbbed. He was too weak to get up.

Zane let himself lie on the road. Maybe someone would find him?

Trying to catch his breath and calm the pain of his wound, he stared up at the sky. It was a clear day, and the sun was warm with white clouds drifting lazily on the breeze. It was beautiful. In any other circumstance, Zane would have enjoyed it. But this time it felt like it was mocking him.

Zane tried to get up, but his body wouldn't let him. His limbs felt like they were made of lead. He groaned.

First Spinjitzu Master, why was this happening? Zane didn't deserve what was happening to him. He was a good person. Bad things didn't happen to good people, right?

What happened after he had run? What became of his brothers during that fight? Were they okay? Were they looking for him like they said they would?

"That's an unnecessary question to ask..." Zane muttered to himself. "Of course they would come looking for me. Cole said so himself..."

But would they make it to him before the ghosts did? Or would they stumble upon his dead body instead?

Zane couldn't help but think about what would happen if they found him dead. Carrying his half scrapped body onto the Bounty, his family weeping over him, reliving the entire nightmare all over again like when he sacrificed himself to defeat the Overlord. His team, broken. PIXAL, alone once again.

The thought of it made Zane's eyes burn as tears threatened to fall.

No. He couldn't let that happen. Not again. He had to get back to his family.

Zane propped himself on one elbow and tried for the third time to get up. His vision swam and warning signals flashed in front of his eyes.

Zane grunted in pain as he lay back down.

"Morro must have damaged some of my systems." Zane told himself. He winced as he reached over to open up his arm panel. "Perhaps I should run a system check of myself..."

He pressed a few buttons in his arm. A few moments later the results of the diagnostic came back. Several minor systems were damaged. Zane breathed a sigh of relief as nothing major was hit.

But still, the pain from his wound was absolutely debilitating.

Zane closed his eyes and took deep breaths, trying to calm his still racing heart.

He was so tired from running, and the sun's warmth on his face was making him drowsy.

No, no. He couldn't fall asleep. Not now. If he did, he would be a sitting duck.

He tried to fight the fatigue that was creeping up on him, but he wasn't strong enough. His energy levels were too low.

Zane slipped off into a deep sleep.

...

Zane roused from his sleep. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at the sky, and a jolt of terror went through him.

It was sunset. He was asleep for far too long!

Down the road, Zane saw two ghostly figures coming towards him.

He jumped up and ran. The second night of pursuit was on.

Day 2

Despite him sleeping all day, Zane had grown weaker and was stumbling over roots and stones in the road as it became rougher. He fell a couple of times, which aggravated the pain in his side.

But he kept running. He had to.

His lungs and legs were burning as he kept on. He never knew he could run so much, but he didn't know how much more he would be able to take. Even though he was a nindroid didn't mean he was invincible.

Luckily, Zane made it through the night and finally let himself fall to his knees as the sun shone on the forest. Gasping for breath, he finally was able to rest.

He was in really bad shape, being famished, dehydrated, and exhausted. His throat burned. He needed water more than anything else.

Struggling to get up, Zane stumbled into the other side of the forest from the ghosts to find a river, creek, pond, anything. After walking a short distance he heard the sound of bubbling water. Following the sound, he came to a very steep slope. Looking down, he saw a creek.

Zane began making his way down the hill but slipped as the forest floor was slick.

"Aah!" Zane cried as he went tumbling down the hill before landing at the creek's edge. He landed hard on his injured side and passed out.

He came to after he didn't know how long. His torso throbbed in agony so much a couple of tears rolled down his face.

The pain dulled, and Zane got up when he saw the creek.

Water!

Relieved he was finally able to rehydrate, he scooped the water with his hands and drank. It was icy cold and refreshing. Even after his thirst was quenched he kept drinking to edge off the hunger as well.

Zane wiped his mouth and looked up at the sky. The shadows of the forest were getting longer as the sun sank to the west. He had to get going.

Using trees to support himself, Zane climbed back up the hill and back to the road. Feeling somewhat better he took off in a sprint and did his best to ignore the pain from his wound and continued on the faltering road that continued south.

The ghosts caught up with him quickly over the course of the night. While he was running, Zane took a bad fall as he stumbled over himself. The pain was so bad he couldn't get up, and he couldn't get his knees under him.

The ghosts sped ahead and took their chance, lunging at the injured ninja. Ghoultar swung his scythe at him

Zane rolled to avoid the weapon, but he was too slow. He yelled out in pain as the blade sliced the skin on his back.

Zane blasted ice at the ghost, making both of them drop back. But Bansha rushed him, and Zane kicked her in the stomach sending her reeling back.

He used their distraction to jump up and run as fast as he could. He could feel his blood soak the fabric of his gi from his new injury. But he continued to run because it was all he could do.

When the sun came up again and the ghosts were forced into the shadows, Zane collapsed facefirst onto the ground.

When will it end?

Zane lifted his head and saw the road had thinned very much, and the forest had grown much, much thicker.

"Where am I?" He asked himself. He tried to get his coordinates, but they came out scrambled.

What? Where was he then?

Searing pain in his back jolted him from his thoughts. He groaned.

He would use this day to conserve as much energy as possible. He was lucky to get away from the ghosts once. He wasn't so sure if he would a second time.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for more! Be sure to like, favorite, and drop a review on your way out! RealtreeGal, out!


End file.
